First Round: battles and a touch of blue sky

Too much, too soon for Kouame; Halys and Rinderknech advance

Much was expected of Moïse Kouame as he made his Rolex Paris Masters debut, but the prodigy did not enjoy the first outing he had hoped for. Originally due to face Alejandro Davidovich Fokina, Kouame instead found himself up against lucky loser Nuno Borges following the Spaniard’s late withdrawal. Fresh from his title-winning run at the Brest Challenger, the Frenchman perhaps lacked a little energy. Faria, on the other hand, fully aware of the opportunity that had unexpectedly come his way after falling in the second round of qualifying, produced an excellent performance to prevail 6-3, 6-1 in just 1h03. The Portuguese player now faces Karen Khachanov, who survived a scare of his own on Monday evening.

The day had begun far more positively for the French contingent. Taking on Wimbledon semi-finalist Arthur Fery, Quentin Halys produced a rock-solid display throughout. Outstanding behind serve, with 17 aces and 87% of points won behind his first delivery, he showed tremendous composure to save two set points in the opening tie-break before taking control of the match. Confidence flowing, he continued to dictate proceedings and secured the decisive break late in the second set to seal a 7-6(6), 7-5 victory in 1h38.

The win earns him a first main-draw victory at the Rolex Paris Masters after unsuccessful attempts in 2022 and 2024. Next up: seventh seed Frances Tiafoe, who remains firmly in the hunt for a place at the ATP Finals in Turin.

The path to victory proved rather more complicated for Arthur Rinderknech. A slow start against No.16 seed Francisco Cerundolo on Centre Court left the Frenchman chasing the match for long periods. At one stage, the Argentine even served for victory at 5-4 in the second set.

That proved to be the wake-up call Rinderknech needed. The 2025 Shanghai Masters finalist broke back at the last possible moment before dominating the tie-break to level the match. Two games into the deciding set, Cerundolo, troubled by a back problem, was forced to retire. After 1h39, the scoreboard read 3-6, 7-6(2), 2-0 ret. A Round of 16 finisher here in 2024, Rinderknech will now have the chance to equal his best Paris result against qualifier Mattia Bellucci, who defeated compatriot Lorenzo Sonego on Monday.

Etcheverry, Tien and Berrettini prevail in thrillers

As expected, the clash between Tomas Martin Etcheverry and Andrey Rublev delivered a spectacular battle. Their previous meeting, in Halle in 2025, had gone to three sets with two tie-breaks. History repeated itself on Tuesday on the fast courts of the Plenitude Arena. In a contest decided by baseline consistency and the ability to handle pressure, Etcheverry eventually emerged victorious after a gruelling encounter, winning 6-4, 6-7(4), 7-6(3) in 2h49. To improve on his second-round exits in 2023 and 2024, he will now have to get past one of the form players on tour: Vienna finalist Alex de Minaur.

The crowd on Court 2 barely had time to catch its breath before Matteo Berrettini and No.14 seed Brandon Nakashima produced another drama-filled encounter. Following a very similar script to the match before it, the Italian ultimately came through, saving two match points in a final tie-break packed with tension before securing a 6-4, 3-6, 7-6(8) victory in 2h10. Having avenged his defeat to the same opponent in Shanghai, Berrettini claimed his first career win at the Rolex Paris Masters. His reward is a second-round blockbuster against Frenchman Ugo Humbert, who also came through a high-quality battle on Monday evening.

Finally, like Moïse Kouame, Learner Tien discovered the identity of his opponent later than expected. Originally scheduled to face Stefanos Tsitsipas, the American instead found himself up against Adolfo Daniel Vallejo following the Greek’s withdrawal. Forced to work hard throughout, Tien eventually overcame a stubborn opponent 6-3, 5-7, 7-5 after 2h20. His next challenge will come against Luca Van Assche.